Smokoo prepares for the consumer protection act

Smokoo is gambling, you bet money and hope you win, if you dont, you loose your money, how is this different to gambling. Normal auctions dont take your money when your offer does not stand.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if Smokoo open shop in Lesotho / Swaziland. Not bad places altogether if you aren't dirt poor. Perhaps Piggs will offer to purchase them?
 
SnortTM said:
Ouch... over R300k for a TV worth 30K. I wonder how hard this CPA will affect their margins?
http://www.smokoo.co.za/auctions/smokoosamsungua55_592181

How long has that thing been going? By my calculations, it's 9 days + so far!
Click to expand...

Really think that 90% of the bids are their own bots bidding, so they not making such huge amounts. But they are still scamming a lot of people and making a lot of money in the process.
 
That TV is now over 410k!
Somehow Smokoo will have you believe that the people who have been autobidding for the past 10 days have a fair calculable shot at securing the item. I'd love to know how many individual bidders there have been and how much each bidder has spent! It's clearly more a gamble than a hand of cards!
 
The good of man.

I like to believe in the good of man, I would like to believe that everything on these guys site is legit. EG, that they are a PTY (LTD) if they are, they are being audited. If they had things like bots etc which stopped you from winning, I would think that that would be illegal on an auction site. I dont know that law too well, but if they were allowed to do it, then yeah, i agree its a bit like gambling, and the odds are stacked against you, if they do not have bots and everyone who is bidding are real people, then I think your odds are better.

Dont know anyone who has won, then again i dont know anyone who plays :-)
 
jeinnor30 said:
I like to believe in the good of man, I would like to believe that everything on these guys site is legit. EG, that they are a PTY (LTD) if they are, they are being audited. If they had things like bots etc which stopped you from winning, I would think that that would be illegal on an auction site. I dont know that law too well, but if they were allowed to do it, then yeah, i agree its a bit like gambling, and the odds are stacked against you, if they do not have bots and everyone who is bidding are real people, then I think your odds are better.

Dont know anyone who has won, then again i dont know anyone who plays :-)
Click to expand...

86000+ bids later and FINALLY one.... just 1 lucky winner gets the TV for R2k.
http://www.smokoo.co.za/auctions/smokoosamsungua55_592181

bots or no bots, the odds of winning that TV were slim
 
I have recently did some research in Penny auction websites, (to run one myself)

Came across the company who did smokoo`s website, and got some inside info,

They gave me a demo account to see whats running at the admin side,

Not saying that Smokoo is doing this, But YES there is a option to have robots bidding, and... for testing purposes,

Lets say they are not using them, the other main problem for them is, the users that are bidding, I have kept an eye on a lot of auctions, over a long period,

Big spending users are becoming noticeable, as big spenders and then other players doesn't want to play against them, and get out, so they are winning more and more for less and less, I think becoming a problem for smokoo, and yes there are limits on the amount of auctions to win in certain categories, bit i counted and there was a few players winning more than they should.

Gambling, Can be, I have lost R250 bidding on a HDD, against a player that i have seen, play till he wins, even paying 2 times the retail price,

Cheers
 
Cause it's a bot paying 2 x the retail price using virtual credits costing them nothing.
Who decides when the auction stops? If everyones on autobid then and you get these winners by using autobid - did they win cause the competitors autbidder failed? Or did his Internet time out causing server to allocate the win.... or do they just click 'stop' from the admin panel once they've made enough.....?

So many variables. So much risk and a total gamble.
 
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